Foundation For Burkitt Lymphoma Research

The Foundation for Burkitt Lymphoma Research (FFBLR) was established in September 2009 in Geneva, Switzerland by Dr. Jean Paul Martin and Dr. Marie-Reine Martin. They took this decision because their son Xavier Martin was diagnosed with Burkitt Lymphoma (BL), and subsequently passed away from a relapse of the disease in May 2010.

The strategic focus and goals of the Foundation are to:

Conduct appropriate pre-clinical and clinical research experiments leading to international presentations and publications that convey new learning’s about the mechanisms and treatment of Burkitt Lymphoma.

Facilitate international exchange and collaboration of existing pre-clinical and clinical data sets among academic and private research centers.

The Foundation for Burkitt Lymphoma Research has established a collaborative effort with the National Cancer Institute (NCI), in order to develop a genomic databank for Burkitt Lymphoma. The Burkitt Lymphoma Genome Sequencing Project (BLGSP) will compile genetic changes present in BL tumors, analyze the data to identify diagnostic, prognostic, or therapeutic markers or targets, and publish the results. As with other cancer sequencing projects, the goal is to identify potential genetic changes in patients with BL that could lead to better prevention, detection and treatment of the cancer.